


Magic Soup

by finereluctance



Category: Olympics RPF
Genre: M/M, Schmoop
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-10-05
Updated: 2013-10-05
Packaged: 2017-12-28 12:51:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 699
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/992209
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/finereluctance/pseuds/finereluctance
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Nathan hated being sick.  Apologies for utter schmoop, but a friend was sick and I was bored at work, which led to this.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Magic Soup

**Author's Note:**

  * For [intrepidy (tiptoedbow)](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=intrepidy+%28tiptoedbow%29).



Nathan hated being sick. Beyond anything else in the world, he hated being sick. 

As an athlete he depended on his body every day. He pushed himself to his limits an beyond them on a weekly basis. He was active- after practice and a nap he usually spent time in the gym or hiking in the hills above the Bay. There was no use sitting at home when he could be out doing things, so on the rare occasion he did get sick he was grumpy and miserable. 

One day of missed practices and sleeping all day was one thing. More than that was torture. Especially when his aching muscles barely allowed him to move and he couldn't breathe through his nose. 

His phone beeped with a text from his boyfriend, Matt. 

Day 3 now, isn't it? 

I hate you. 

No, you really don't. 

I hate being sick. 

I know. 

Well that was a useless conversation. Not that Nathan was up for particularly intense or important conversations with the haze of fever than hung over him, leaving his thoughts fuzzy and muddled. Even without the fever making it difficult to concentrate, the text was just a reminder that Matt was in Tucson for training and Nathan was sick at home in Berkeley. 

He fell into a restless sleep not long after, his phone cradled against his chest in case Matt messaged him again. The sleep was far from peaceful as he was plagued by fever dreams and weird, twisted figures in a Surrealist landscape. At one point he was certain he saw Matt ahead of him, and Nathan followed him for a few blocks trying to catch up with the familiar shoulders and back. Just a few feet away, he called out and the figure, instead of turning back to him turned into a flock of birds that flew off into the purple night sky. 

Nathan woke with a violent cough, his body shuddering and desperate for breath. Tears spring to his eyes and when the coughing finally calmed he burrowed miserably into his pillow. With fuzzy ringing in his ears and the sound of his own sniffling he missed the first knock on the door, but he looked across the darkened room when the door opened. 

A familiar shape entered, blocking the light from the hallway and creating a large, impossible silhouette. "Matty?" He whispered softly - but there was no way it could be him, Matt was in Arizona. 

"Hey sicky," Matt's deep voice filled the quiet room like a breath of fresh air and Nathan immediately relaxed. 

"What are you doing here?" He murmured in amazement, curled on his side so he can watch his lover approach. Both of Matt's hands were full, but he set a bowl and a glad on Nathan's side table before sitting on the bed next to him so the younger swimmer could cuddle up close to him with his head pillowed on Matt's thigh. 

Matt just smiled and slid one of his wonderfully large hands through Nathan's hair to rub his neck gently. "I couldn't stay in Tucson knowing you were here and miserable, so I caught a flight out this morning."

"Love you," Nathan murmured, tucked in close to the comforting warmth. 

"You need to eat the soup I brought before you go back to sleep," he could tell Matt was smiling, and sure enough when he opened his eyes Matt's smile told him everything about why the older swimmer was there. "Trust me, it's magic soup. You'll feel a lot better."

True to his word, after a bowl of chicken noodle soup and a cool shower with Matt (Nathan could barely stand, but Matt supported his weight and gently washed his hair and the dried sweat from his body), Nathan was already more focused than he had been in days. When Matt left him sitting at his desk in low-slung pajama pants and changed the sheets on the bed before putting any clothes on his long, tanned body, Nathan knew he would be just fine. He had Matt with him, and while there was nothing he hated more than being sick, there was nothing he loved more than Matt.


End file.
